Apparatus for communicating power to and controlling the motion of mechanism



(No Model.)

P. H. RICHARDS.

APPARATUS FOR COMMUNICATING POWER TO AND CONTROLLING I THE MOTION OP MECHANISM.

No. 269.713. Patented Deo.2 6, 1882.

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NrrED STATES PATENT OFFICE FRANCIS H. RICHARDS, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

APPARATUS FOR COMMUNICATING POWER TO AND CONTROLLING THE MOTION 0F MECHANISM.

SPESIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 269,713, dated December 26, 1882.

Application filed June 12, 1882.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANCIS H. RICHARDS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Springfield, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Communicating Power to and Controlling the Motion of Mechanism, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for communicating power to and controlling the motion of mechanism, the object being to provide improved means for starting and stoppingreverseIy-rotating pulleys and other analogous devices which are applied to rotating shafts in various mechanical structores; and said invention consists in a novel arrangement of shipper-lever devices, involving the employment of a movable fulcrum for said lever actuated by the said rotating or driven shaft, whereby the shipping mechanism becomes self-operative to arrest the motion of said shaft after a certain number of revolutions of the latter, and the uninterrupted rotation thereof is made dependentupon a. movement of the swinging end of said lever corresponding to the movement of said fulcrum, all as hereinafter fully set forth.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure l is a plan view of reverselyrotating mechanism applied toashaft, to which is applied devices for stopping, starting, and

controlling the motion thereof, embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a section of Fig. 1 on the line so '00 of that figure.

In thedrawings,A indicates a suitable frame to support the mechanism herein shown. a is I a shaft supported in proper. boxes on said thread cut. thereon. d is a gear secured to D is a double-rim friction-clutch adapt (No model.)

] shaft 2;, and engaging with said gear 0. h is a nut fitted to move longitudinally on shafto, on the screw thereon. e is a shipper-lever, forked at one end, and provided with pins to engage in the usual way in a groove around the hub of clutch D, and is pivoted by similar means to said not h. 0 is a sliding cross-bar provided with a rack on one edge, and pivotally connected with one end of lever e. n is a hand-lever hung on frame A, and provided with a segmental gearengaging with said rack on bar 0.

The friction-pulleys b b are constructed each with a hollow face having a slightly-tapering border surrounding it, and adapted to receive thetapering rims on the above-described clutch D, the latter and said pulleys co operating to cause the shaft a to he revolved in the direction corresponding to that in which either of I said pulleys may be revolving when said clutch is forced into engagement with it, as hereinafter described. Said pulleys are adapted to be run by two belts-one open and one crossedto rotate them in opposite directions, as indi-' cated by the arrowsnear their sides, said clutch having a freedom of motion therebetween sufficient to permit of moving it from its engagement with one pulley to the other, or to bring it equidistant from both pulleys, so that the latter revolve freely on shaft a without turning it. The shaft o, provided with a screwthread on that portion thereof opposite said pulleys and clutch, is adapted to be rotated on frame A parallel to shaft a by the gears c and (I, secured respectively to the last-named shaft and to shaft c, so that the latter shall revolve whenever shaft a does.

A nut, 71, which serves as a fulcrum for 'groove around it, and is provided with the usual pins fixed in its arms to enter said groove at opposite sides of said clutch-hub. Lever e is made to encircle the said nut h and shaft 11,

as shown in Fig. 2, or otherwise formedto provide for conveniently and practicably pivoting said lever to said nut. As herein shown,-two screws or pins pass through that portion of said lever surrounding said nut and enterperfora-tions in opposite sides of the latter, whereby lever c is so attached to said nut that the movement of the latter on shaft c will swing said lever upon its nut-pivots, either end of said lever being held stationary. Said lever c has its swinging end, or that one opposite to its clutch-engaging end, pivotally connected to a sliding cross-bar, 0, as shown, and the latter isprovided with a rack on one edge, near one end thereof, and a hand-lever, 01, having a segment of a gear thereon, is pivoted on frame A, and said gear-segment engages with saidrack on bar 0.

The above-described lever-and-bar connection with the lever 0 provides means for operating clutch D to engage the latter with the frictionmlleys b b with considerable force, and is useful under some circumstances; but,- when preferred, lever 6 may be operated directly by grasping the latter at the end of its long arm, in the usual manner of operating such devices, and the bar 0 and hand-lever n be dispensed with.

The operation of my improvements is as follows: The pulleys b 0 being in motion in the manner and by the means above described, it the hand-lever n be moved in the direction of the arrow 00, the friction-rim .2 of clutch D is engaged with pulley I), causing shaft to to turn toward the right, which motion of shaft a causes the fulcrum-nut h and theforked end of lever e to move in the direction of the arrow 8, thereby at once, or as quickly as the proportions and adjustment of the parts allows, disengaging the said ring 2 from pulley Z) and stopping the shaft (1.

The above-described action of lever e and clutch D is based upon the assumption that w hile shaft a revolves levern, and consequently the end of lever e which is pivoted to bar 0, rest immovable; but if, when shaft (1. begins to rotate, lever n is moved in the direction indicated by the arrow m, to swing the long end of lever c at a speed corresponding to that at which the fulcrum-nut It moves in the direction of arrow .9, the friction-ring cwill remain engaged with pulley b so longas the corresponding movement of said nut It and said end of lever c continues and said rotation of shaft a. be maintained. By a reverse motion of lever a clutch D is carried into engagement with pulley b and the motion of shaft (0 is reversed. As arranged usually, the starting and stopping of machinery by the use of a shipper lever are etfected by a motion of such lever in one direction to start said machinery, and the latter continues in motion until the starting-lever is moved back to its original position; but by the use of the above-described improvements, while a similar motion to the one above described (of the shipper-lever) is required to start the machine, the latter continues in motion only so long as the entire starting or shi 'iping lever continues to move, as above set forth, and the return of the shipping-lever to its original position so actuates clutch D as to cause shaft to to be reversely rotated to about the same degree as it was while clutch I) was in engagement with the pulley b.

The abovedescribed improvements are applicable to all kinds of machinery or parts of the same wherein a limited motion in reverse direction is required, among which are hoisting and dredging machinery, steering apparatus, power-hammers, riveting, punching, and shearing machines, &c., and is particularly useful in operatingthe feeding mechanism oflarge machines,combining the easy control of handfeeding with the force and certainty of powerfeeding. in the present instance the immediate driving mechanism shown and described consists of the said friction-clutch and pulleys b I), made operative by the movement of lever e. In practice any driving apparatus may be employed suitable to the nature of the machine employed; also, as herein shown, the fulcrumnut 71/ is moved by its engagement with the rotating screw on shaft 1;, the latter being driven from shaft a by the gears c d. It is immaterial to the nature and purpose of this invention that the devices which give said fulcrum-nut the required motion for the purpose above set forth be identically those described, if they be so arranged as to provide a moving shipper-lever fulcrum and appliances whereby by arresting the movement of the long arm of said lever the driving mechanism is, after a certain number of revolutions, rendered inoperative, and by allowing said lever to be carried bodily by said moving fulcrum the uninterrupted operation of said driving mechanism is secured.

\Vhat I claim as my invention is 1. In combination with a reversely-rotatiug driving mechanism, substantiallyas described, the shaft a, a movable shipper-lever fulcrum whose movements are controlled, by means substantially as described, by those of saidshat't, and a shippcrlever pivoted to said movable fulcrum and engaging with said driving mechanism, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with a reversely-rotating driving mechanism, substantially as described, of the shaft or, of a movable shipperlever fulcrum whose movements are controlled, by means substantially as described, by those of said shaft, of a shipper-lever pivoted to said movable fulcrum and engaging with said driving mechanisn1,and of means, substantially as described, for moving and arresting themovement of the long arm of said shipper-lever, substantially as set forth.

3. The shaft a, pulleys 7) b, the frictionclutch D, the screwed shaft 'v, adapted to be rotated by shaft (6, the nut It, and lever e, piv

oted'to said nut and engagingwith said clutch, described, of movement coincident; with the combined and operating substantially as set starting of said machinery in the plane of the 10 forth. vibratory movements of said lever, substan- 4. The combination, with a shipper-lever tiallyas setforth. engaging with mechanism, substantially as} FRANCIS H. RICHARDS. described, for starting and stopping machin- Witnesses: ery, of a fulcrum pivotally supporting said I H. A. GHAPIN, lever, and capable, by means substantially as l R. F. HYDE. 

